


we're stronger together

by blifuys



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Established Relationship, Family Fluff, M/M, Marriage Proposal, Mentioned Bokuto Koutarou, Post-Canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-26
Updated: 2019-05-26
Packaged: 2020-03-18 01:32:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,695
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18976039
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/blifuys/pseuds/blifuys
Summary: Akiteru comes for a visit, but it's not for the reason Tsukishima expects.





	we're stronger together

**Author's Note:**

> So, I did this quick oneshot because a Twitter mutual of mine felt like Kurotsuki with AkiTen on the side, and a drabble became a full on one shot. 
> 
> So if you're reading this, Lenca, I hope it makes your day!
> 
> As usual, thanks for reading, and leave a comment! 🌸

"May I ask you  _ why  _ you have a whole buffet set out on my dining table?" Tsukishima snaps, quite displeased at how Akiteru had taken over the entirety of his nice teakwood table, dishes spread out across the entirety of the tablecloth-ed surface.

"Cause, cause Tenma! And, and I just didn't know what I should have made because Tenma likes  _ everything _ and I want to make him happy," Ever the nervous rambler, Akiteru tries his hardest to speak calmly, failing epicly as his hands gesticulate in front of him excitedly. "So I made chicken, a bunch of sushi rolls, I went down to Tsukiji to get that expensive tuna and everything-"

"Brother, I asked for a reason, not an old grandfather's story."

Today was special, with Akiteru standing in the dining portion of the living room, comically dressed in a gaudy black apron printed with bold pink words saying 'Purr-fection in the Kitchen!". (It clearly belonged to Kuroo, purchased after a lengthy battle at the supermarket about whether or not such a heinously unfunny thing was  _ necessary. _ Spoilers: Kuroo won. Tsukishima has dreamt about burning it to a crisp every single day since.)

It wasn't every day that Akiteru made his way South to Tokyo, visiting his little brother and his husband on a  _ Monday _ of all days, but his brother had never been categorised as anything close to 'conventional' all his life.

He wasn't even here for Tsukishima. No! He was here because it was convenient to come spend a couple of days in his household, and then have Kuroo and Tsukishima invite Tenma over for a big feast thinly veiled as a 'reunion dinner'.

He wonders if this is karma for all the times he ignored his brother, because he was being  _ ignored for his brother's boyfriend _ , in his own home! The audacity, the sheer  _ nerve _ of some people.

"Oh, Kei. Do you think he'll like it? What's the best mitarashi dango around here? Should I go get some flowers to put in a vase-" And there he goes again, off shooting his mouth and talking about everything and anything except the exact reason why he had decided to throw such a huge feast in the first place.

"Brother. If this is really  _ just  _ a reunion dinner, what's gotten you so worried?  _ And do not lie to me."  _ Tsukishima says with a venomous glare, his piercing honey brown eyes shooting daggers at his brother through his glasses. In front of him, Akiteru shrinks in his spot, realising that there really was no hiding with his little brother.

With a sigh, the older Tsukishima's tense shoulders fall, and his head droops just a little with the resignation that he had to eventually come clean about the real reason behind his plans.

"Man. There's nothing that escapes you, huh," Akiteru chortles a bit as he smiles, straightening up his back so that he didn't look so lame in front of Kei, "I'm planning to propose to Tenma tonight."

This didn't really come as a surprise, because it was an open secret that Akiteru  _ could not keep secrets _ . This trait of his had caused many issues for him, one being that unspeakable incident involving the Karasuno Volleyball Club.

It had been quite obvious to Kei that this plan had been in the works for at least 6 months, because Akiteru had openly asked Kuroo about where the raven-haired man had gotten the ring that he presented to Kei on their 7th anniversary.

The conversation they had about his brother was quite strange, really, mainly because hearing from your husband that your brother was looking for rings was not the most conventional way to find out.

But this has already been established. With Tsukishima Akiteru, there are 3 things you can expect: that he has never been conventional all his life, that he can't keep a secret for shit, and that he really, really loves Tenma with all his heart.

Shame that Akiteru didn't realise that last bit until Kei's final Spring High journey in his last year though, and the fact that the younger Tsukishima's relationship was longer than his would be something that Kei would take pride in forever.

And the fact that he had been married for 2 whole years while Akiteru was still in the boyfriend zone.

_ That's what you get for lying to a kid. _

"So you think that proposing  _ here _ in my house is a good idea?" Kei questions him with a cock of his eyebrow, but there's no bite to his words. There really wasn't anything wrong with it, really, but Kei being Kei--he can't really hold back his mean streak has much as he wanted to. How Kuroo fell in love with him was really beyond him.

But really, they were both equally bastards, so it balanced out, he supposed.

" _ Please _ Kei, today's our anniversary, and you  _ know  _ how much you mean to me," Akiteru pleads, pressing both his hands together and pressing them against his forehead, his expression curled with desperation as similar honey-brown eyes stare back at his brother, "I promise I'll owe you if you help me out this once!"

In the first place, Kei really didn't have much of a reason to tease his brother. But now that a  _ favour _ had come into the picture…

"Stop sending Kuroo-san my baby pictures." He says simply.

"What?" Akiteru blinks, dropping his hands to his side as his face twists into something of confusion and questioning.

"I said, I'll help you if you stop sending Kuroo-san my baby pictures."

Again, there really wasn't anything wrong with it. But Akiteru had such a unique talent in finding the most obscure pictures of Kei in his boyhood, and it was the norm to have Kuroo squeal into his ear about how he was so 'fucking cute', and  _ god you were such an adorable kiddo with the fluffiest cheeks Kei I want kids Kei I want kids that look like you Keeeeeeeeeeei. _

If there was the chance to put an end to the cooing and the baby fever, it was right now.

But of course, Akiteru agreeing to such a proposition would seem like the ultimate betrayal against his brother-in-law, in the little made-up club they had to fawn over Kei as much as they possibly could.

"I don't know Kei, your pictures are just so cute! And-"

"Well, pack up your stuff, cause I'm not letting you have dinner here then."

"OKAY, okay, I surrender! I give! I promise I'll stop sending them!"

There was just something  _ so awfully satisfying _ about getting what you wanted, and the mischievous curl on Kei's lips was really enough to show how content he was.

\---

Because Kuroo worked near Tenma's company, the both of them end up walking through the front door together.

"Kei, we're home!" Kuroo calls out in his properly planned-out coming home routine, all while he sheds the leather shoes off his feet, wiggling his toes for them to breathe after long hours at work, "Tenma-san's here with me too!"

"Excuse me for the intrusion!" Tenma calls out next to him, also pulling off his sneakers and setting them nicely to the side in the entrance hall. In the years after Akiteru and Tenma met each other again at Kei's first Spring High, he had let his hair grow longer still, and he had become accustomed to simply thing the thick black locks back into a ponytail.

On cue, thumping footsteps rush down the hallway, and the first Tsukishima to greet them (Tenma) was none other than Akiteru.

"Babe!" Akiteru shouts loudly, before reaching in and scooping the smaller man into a tight embrace, like they had been separated for years. The actual length was 3 months, mind you, but as they say,  _ absence makes the heart grow fonder _ .

"Akkun!" Tenma replies as he throws his arms around his boyfriend's neck, oblivious to whatever was going on around them.

Already moving to give them their space, Kuroo places his bag down by the side, beginning to move to seek out his own husband, only to find that Kei had been standing just a little off to the side, partially hidden behind the wall next to their door.

"Hey you," Kuroo smiles as he reaches out for Kei, tired expression lighting up like a fresh burst of energy had rushed through his body the moment he spotted his husband. "Missed me?"

As the older man slips his arms around his torso, Kei couldn't help but push himself up against him, leaning in to press a soft peck against his lips. It had taken him a long time for him to get used to the random bursts of affection that Kuroo had for him. But after months of adjustment and communication, he had finally gotten used to returning the affection in small doses, but that was just enough for Kuroo to keep wanting more and more.

"Hey yourself, and no," Kei says while he pulls his head back from the kiss, smirking very slightly while his tone oozed with sarcasm, "it's a shame you're back, really."

"I love you too, babe," Kuroo laughs, knowing that this was just Tsukki-speak for 'I love you so much and I can't live without you', "What's for dinner?"

"Ugh," Kei quickly pulls back and groans, a disgusted look on his face as if he had smelled something gross, "don't get me started on dinner."

Behind them, Akiteru and Tenma chuckle, murmuring in hushed voices between themselves so softly that it was hard to tell what they were talking about, the both of them deeply distracted by the love they had for each other.

\---

"And then Satoru-san said: 'No, I didn't ask for mirin, I asked for soy sauce!'" Akiteru says over dinner, earning a roar of laughter from both Kuroo and Tenma.

"Are you serious? I can't believe him!" Tenma reaches up to wipe a tear from his eye, and Kei couldn't really tell if it was fake or real. He wasn't sure what was there to laugh about, but he wasn't going to kick a man while he was down.

Yeah, it was about time for the plan to spring into action, and with at least half of the spread still sitting on the dining table, he had ample time to act, and drag Kuroo away from the scene of the operation.

Across the table, Akiteru glances up to Kei with a smile, a lot more toned down now than how it had been for the last 15 minutes or so. He was quite glad, really, that Tenma seemed really happy over the spread filled with his favourite dishes, and that his husband was just happy that there was something to eat.

Thank God Kuroo wasn't a picky eater. It was so easy to satisfy him with food, even easier if it was fish.

And that's how he would lure his husband away, making sure that he didn't divulge  _ anything  _ about the plan in place until it was set in motion.

Kei clears his throat, and he pushes his seat back, glancing to Kuroo.

"Tetsurou," he begins, knowing that calling him by his first name would immediately grab the attention of his ever-loving husband. "There's actually one last dish we couldn't fit on the table, it's the mackerel on the stove top, could you get it for me?"

"Sure! I'll be right back guys," Kuroo smiles brightly, pushing his own chair back as he gets up and heads for the kitchen, unaware of what was going on. With a quick glance shared between Akiteru and Kei, the younger Tsukishima hurriedly gets up as well, excusing himself to the bathroom as he follows after his husband.

Once inside their nice, simple kitchen, Kei closes the door behind him, and he walks straight toward Kuroo with purpose.

"Hey," He says as Kuroo hovers over the fish sitting on the stovetop, warm and aromatic and looking _freakin'_ _delicious_. "Stay in here for a bit, Akiteru's about to pop the question.

"Wh--  _ now _ ?!" The raven-haired man gasps in shock, his eyes comically wide with astonishment as he realises that this whole dinner was a plan to get his brother-in-law to propose to his own boyfriend, "why didn't you tell me?"

"There wasn't any time. Plus, it's a lot more fun to keep a secret."

"Sly bastard, you're lucky I love you."

"That, I am."

There wasn't any indicator of how long the proposal would take, and Kei knew that Akiteru was the type of person to give a grand speech to bore their partner to death before finally presenting the ring, so standing around in their kitchen was a guarantee until there was some indicator that Tenma had either accepted (hopefully) or rejected (hopefully not) his boyfriend.

Until then, it was just them both, and being around his husband was always nice.

"Heh, I remember when I was gonna propose to you," Kuroo smiles at him with such aching fondness that it was hard to look directly at him, but Kei perseveres and keeps his eyes on his husband. "I was so nervous."

"I think you were more nervous about the fact that Bokuto-san would set the bench on fire somehow." Kei says, and in the next second he finds Kuroo's hand reaching out to wrap around his own, their fingers interlocking as similar wedding bands clinked softly against each other. "It was really hot that day too."

"Look, if he  _ did  _ set it on fire, I'd have to spend our wedding money on paying back the park owner for destruction of property!" Kuroo quickly jumps to his own defence, as if trying to convince Kei that it really wasn't his fault that he was nervous. But he knew already that Kei knew, that Kei knew how much time and effort was spent in planning everything to the very second.

He was worth it. He is worth it, and he will always be worth it in Kuroo's eyes.

"True. Maybe I should have rejected you, then I could have witnessed Bokuto-san's  _ Please I'm Begging You _ dance."

"Hey! Bokuto can do the dance any day, agreeing to marry your  _ handsome _ and  _ genius _ boyfriend is a once-in-a-lifetime thing!"

"Right."

It was always like this, how they bickered and tried to outwit each other every day. There was no dull day when he was by Kuroo's side, even on days that seemed to have nothing going on, he could always feel the heat of his body on his own to just remember how special their bond was to him.

Even in marriage, Kei found himself falling for Kuroo all over again every morning when he opened his eyes, his sleeping face enough to remind the blonde of exactly how much he loved him.

And if all went well, he'd love him for a very, very long time to come.

But for now, they were here, stuck in the kitchen with nothing but each other and a delicious fish waiting for them, their eyes deeply locked within each others' like the very day they had first met.

"I love you," Kuroo says first, his lips curling his a genuine smile stretched across his lips. His hand squeezes Kei's, and the blonde's heart jumps in his chest.

"I love you too." Kei replies, as he feels his cheeks rising, something passionate and powerful in his chest making his own lips curve without any means to stop.

And on cue, Akiteru begins to cheer outside, his own happiness spreading through the house in  _ whoops _ and  _ yes- _ es. It was pretty clear to them what the outcome was to them, and it just made the moment even more sweeter.

"Shall we go outside to congratulate the happy couple?" Kuroo asks his husband, already dragging him toward the door, fish long forgotten on the stove in a rare moment of forgetfulness.

"Sure," Kei says, "After all, big brother sacrificed my baby photos for this moment."

The whines that filled his ears after were painfully annoying, but the night was shared in joy and love, promises of forever whispered into ears as they celebrated deep into the night.

**Author's Note:**

> [come say hi!](https://www.twitter.com/nekohmy)


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